Researchers: Alonso Quijano-Ruiz, Marco Faytong-Haro
Method: Cross-sectional study
Data: 2018 National Health and Nutrition Survey (Ensanut)
Target group: Female adolescents
Sample: 978 female adolescents and their mothers
Outcome of interest: Early sexual initiation, Teenage pregnancy, contraception use
Research paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2021.100782

A large number of studies have shown that young women’s sexual and reproductive outcomes are associated with several mother-related variables. In this study, data from the 2018 National Health and Nutrition Survey of Ecuador (Ensanut) was used to examine whether mothers’ sexual empowerment was predictive of sexual and reproductive outcomes among female adolescents. Sexual empowerment is defined as a woman’s ability to influence the sexual behavior that occurs within her relationship. Results of this study show that having a mother who lacked sexual empowerment increased the odds of early sexual initiation.

Policy issue

Education and employment are widely known as two factors that influence women’s attitudes towards marriage and delay motherhood by raising the opportunity cost of childbearing. However, in Ecuador, pregnancy rates remain high (with some considerable increments in recent years) despite improvements on female educational attainment and labor participation. Studies suggest that social norms such as gender structures and stigma towards the use of contraceptive methods have a potential limiting outcome on women’s sexual agency. Those curtailing effects may be intergenerationally manifested. Can maternal sexual empowerment predict sexual and reproductive outcomes among female adolescents?

Context of the issue

In the last few years, countries in Latin America have successfully managed to reduce teenage pregnancy rates. Ecuador, however, remains having the highest rates in the region. Teenage pregnancy significantly reduces schooling and labor opportunities. Social norms are considered as one of the main root causes of this issue as they are an obstacle to women’s ability to control their own sexual agency; for example, the use of contraception may be associated with promiscuity and infidelity. This paper shows how female sexual empowerment may have inter-generational positive effects that can help reduce Ecuador’s teenage pregnancy rates.

Research details

This study used data from the 2018 National Health and Nutrition Survey of Ecuador (Ensanut). The main goal was to identify if sexual and reproductive outcomes in young women are associated with their mother’s ‘sexual empowerment’. The final sample was made up of 978 daughters and their mothers.

Sexual empowerment was measured according to the mother’s ability to turn down sex and demand contraception use to their partner. Experiencing childbearing at a young age was also included as a sign of low sexual empowerment.

Three outcome variables were included in the study:

• Early sexual initiation: Having intercourse at the age 16 or younger.
• Teenage pregnancy: Having a pregnancy history regardless of outcome.
• Contraception use: Whether any contraceptive method was used during first intercourse.

A logistic regression was performed to test the association between maternal sexual empowerment and their daughters’ sexual outcomes. The model controlled for mother-related, daughter-related and household-related variables. Mother-related controls included employment and marital status as well as educational attainment. Daughter-related controls consisted of school enrollment and knowledge about sexuality, including knowledge about contraception and menstruation at menarche. Household-related controls included ethnicity, geographic area (urban or rural), access to internet and household income. The reasoning behind the selection of the control variables lays on the fact that there is robust evidence that shows that children from well-educated mothers and stable households are more likely to delay their sexual onset and first pregnancies. Other studies have also point out that poor sexual education is one of the most common risk factors associated with early childbearing. Finally, evidence shows that young minority-women from rural, low-income households are more likely to engage in sexual activity at a relatively younger age.

Results and policy lessons

The key findings of this study include:

• Early sexual initiation was more likely to occur in young adolescents whose mothers lacked sexual empowerment and had a teenage birth.
• Girls with a history of pregnancy were more likely to have mothers who reported having become teenage mothers themselves.
• Girls whose mothers were more educated were less likely to have sexual intercourse and more likely to use contraception.
• Girls who knew about contraception from family and other sources, including peers and the internet, were more likely to engage in sexual activity than those who reported having learned from school.

Findings of this study suggest that policies based around the strengthening of sexual empowerment in mothers can be useful at delaying young women’s first intercourse. Additionally, it shows the importance of challenging traditional gender norms and stereotypes in sex education programmes. Due to the sensibility of this issue in Ecuadorian society, parents should be encouraged to take part in these kinds of discussions.